Wendy's dethrones Burger King to become second biggest burger chain in U.S. (but their combined sales still lag behind McDonald's)

Wendy's has dethroned Burger King as the country's second biggest hamburger chain.

Sales for the square-cut, 'old fashioned' burgers edged out Burger King's in U.S. sales volume for the first time since Wendy's was founded in 1969 according to a report by the food industry research firm Technomic Inc. set to be released next month.

Wendy's had sales of $8.5 billion in 2011, compared with $8.4 billion for Burger King. Remaining in first place, McDonald's sales totalled nearly twice larger than both chains' put together with $34.2 billion in sales.

New No. 2: Wendy's has dethroned Burger King as the second biggest burger chain in the United States, one place behind McDonald's

The figures are based Technomic's estimates of system-wide sales at franchise and company-owned restaurants, rather than corporate revenue, which includes fees from franchise operators. Worldwide, Burger King still has far more restaurants than Wendy's and remains the second biggest hamburger chain.

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Both Burger King and Wendy's have struggled in recent years to keep up with the growth of McDonald's, which has managed to keep prices low through the recession, while also introducing a new menu items and remodeling restaurants.

Sales are up 26 percent in the past five years at McDonald's, up 9 percent at Wendy's and flat at Burger King, according to Technomic.

Sales: Wendy's saw a sales increase of 9 per cent bringing them to $8.5 billion in 2011, in comparison to Burger King's $8.4 billion which has become stagnant

Burger King has been reevaluating its business since it was acquired by investment firm 3G Capital in 2010.

The privately held company that's based in Miami recently retired its mascot 'The King' last year and launched a new advertising campaign focused more on food.

Despite its edge over Burger King, Wendy's also been on a mission to reinvent itself as a higher-end hamburger chain with new items like the Dave's Hot 'N Juicy burger introduced last fall.

New face: After recently retiring their mascot 'The King' last year, pictured, Burger King has launched a new advertising campaign focused more on food

CEO Emil Brolick, has called the Dublin, Ohio-based company's poor performance in recent years 'self-inflicted wounds,' also laid out plans this year to raise standards for employees and update stores with an airier, more modern look.

The sales rankings for the top five restaurant chains have undergone another dramatic shift in the past five years, according to Technomic.

Changes: Wendy's has also been on a mission to reinvent itself as a higher-end hamburger chain with new items like the Dave's Hot 'N Juicy burger introduced last fall

In 2006, the No. 2 and No. 3 spots were held by Burger King and Wendy's respectively, making the top three companies all hamburger chains.

Subway now is No. 2 with $11.4 billion in sales last year and Starbucks is No. 3 with $9.8 billion. U.S. sales at both companies have grown at a much faster rate than the top three hamburger chains, with Subway sales up 48 percent from five years ago and Starbucks sales up 39 percent.

The final Technomic report with sales for the top 500 restaurant chains is set to be released April 13.

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Wendy's dethrones Burger King as 2nd biggest burger chain in US but McDonald's is still 1st